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one Dr Marini of Besans, a nobleman of the city of Milan. Not restricted to the
endogamous marriages of peasant society but, rather, seeking to maintain his
socio-economic status, Severino had searched beyond Quinto for a wife. In the years
which foUowed their marriage, Giuditta gave birth to three sons and one daughter:
Virgilio bom in 1846, Sofia in 1847, Federico in 1848 and Emilio in 1853.'
The year after the birth of their last child, the Guscetti family decided to
emigrate to Australia. During the 1850s there were many disagreements between the
liberal and conservative Catholic parties regarding liberal support of Italian refugees
implicated in the stmggle for Italy's political unity. It was at this time that the
Austrians, the then-reigning power, imposed their economic blockade on Ticino.
Severino, as a member of the liberal party had participated in the arguments, eventually
disagreeing with some members of his own party. In 1848 he had also lost the support
of good fiiend and well-known politician, Stefano Franscini, who had left the Ticinese
govemment to join the federal govemment at Beme. By November 1854, Severino
had argued with the leaders of his party and resigned from his official duties* That
same month, the Guscetti family boarded a vessel for Australia. There is also the
possibUity that Severino's extended family had met with financial difficulty as, in the
years following their arrival in Australia, the Guscettis sent back many thousands of
lire to their relatives in Switzerland.'
It is difficult to understand precisely why the Guscettis chose the Colony of
Victoria as their future home. In 1852, two of Quinto's citizens, Antonio and Attilio
Gobbi, had arrived in Australia (after having first searched for gold in America) to be
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